The better your sense of smell, the more you enjoy sex, study suggests

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A sense of smell has been found to correlate with the enjoyment of sex, a new study finds.(Photo: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

People with a higher sensitivity to smell report more pleasurable sexual activities, according to findings of a new study by German researchers in the Archives of Sexual Behavior. And women with a better sense of smell report a higher frequency of orgasms during sexual intercourse.

The study, led by Johanna Bendas of the Technical University of Dresden, looked at the odor sensitivity of 42 women and 28 men ages 18 to 36 using ‘Sniffin’ Sticks’ that measured the level at which a person could detect a smelly chemical.

The participants were then asked a series of questions about their sexual desire, experience (frequency of orgasm, perceived pleasantness of sexual activities) and performance (frequency and average duration of sexual intercourse).

The analysis found no correlation between odor sensitivity and sexual desire or sexual performance. But a higher sensitivity to odors did correlate positively with sexual experience.

“The experience of sexual interactions appears to be enriched by olfactory input,” the study concludes. “The perception of certain body odors may contribute to the concept of sexual pleasure by enhanced recruitment of reward areas.”

The researchers suggest that “the perception of body odors such as vaginal fluids, sperm and sweat seems to enrich the sexual experience” by increasing sexual arousal.